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The Commonwealth of Massachusetts and its capital Boston has been at the heart of New England’s cultural and political life since the Pilgrims first arrived here and has a wealth of interest for visitors.
New England’s most populous state; Massachusetts is home to around 6.4 million people (the majority of which can be found in the Boston metropolitan area) and covers an area of some 10,555 square miles. Massachusetts is nicknamed the Bay State after Massachusetts Bay, which forms the eastern boundary from Beverly in the north to Cape Cod in the southeast. To the south of Massachusetts are the states of Rhode Island and Connecticut, while to the west is New York state and to the north Vermont and New Hampshire.
The first European settlers in New England arrived in Massachusetts Bay in 1620 and later founded the towns of Plymouth, Salem and Boston as part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. By 1692 Massachusetts was the largest of New England’s six colonies and it was here that many of America’s earliest institutions were established including its first university; Harvard and its oldest traditions such as Thanksgiving were formed.
Massachusetts earned the title of ‘the cradle of liberty’ after the first battles for American Independence were fought in its towns and villages such as Lexington, Concord and Boston led by Massachusetts’ patriots; Samuel Adams, John Hancock and Paul Revere. In later years the Bay State would become an industrial powerhouse leading the fledgling nation and the rest of the world in textile production, while Massachusetts ports were among the busiest and most prosperous in the world.
Massachusetts also led the way in literature and philosophy, with key figures such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau coming from the Bay State. While the contribution of the people of Massachusetts to the political life of United States can be seen from the Founding Fathers Benjamin Franklin and John Adams to the Kennedys.
The Bay State boasts a wealth of cultural and historic attractions. From living history museums such as the Plimoth Plantation and Mayflower II in Plymouth to the Freedom Trail in Boston passing the city’s numerous historic landmarks, while the Minute Man National Park outlines the story behind the first shots of the American Revolution during the Battle of Concord & Lexington. In terms of art and culture, Massachusetts has a wealth of institutions to choose from. There is Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, the Isabella Gardner Museum the Harvard Natural History Museum, and of course Fenway Park, the home of the Boston Red Sox. Outside Beantown there is Salem’s Witch Museum, the Peabody Essex Museum, The House of the Seven Gables, the location for Nathaniel Hawthorne’s second novel, along with Concord’s literary sights such as Orchard House, where Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women and Thoreau’s hermitage at Walden Pond. While those looking for a little peace and quiet for themselves need look no further than the world away islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard or the leafy valleys of the Berkshires .
Massachusetts is a state for all seasons where you’ll find something for everyone.
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